What to Know + Expect When You Switch to a Natural Deodorant

Switching to a natural deodorant was really scary for me because I was always a STINKY person. I swore by my beloved Dove Deodorant, even still I would have to reapply it several times a day to keep my stink at bay. I was always worried about smelling bad and avoiding lifting my arms at all costs!

Little did I know, applying more and more deodorant was only making the problem worse! My skin and body was in such a toxic overload that my pores were literally screaming at me for help!

SWEATING IS GOOD - WE ARE SUPPOSED TO SWEAT

Sweating is a natural process to rid our body of toxins! Our body is incredible in its capabilities, but when we try to STOP a natural process of the body, like sweating, that’s when we experience problems.

From the time we enter puberty, we’re trained to believe that we shouldn’t sweat; thus we apply antiperspirants and deodorants.

Problem solved, right?

WRONG.

Applying antiperspirants prevents our sweat glands from doing what they’re supposed to do - detox! Once our bodies enter this state of toxic overload, that’s when we notice our sweat starts to stink, panic, and apply more antiperspirant. It’s a viscous, self-induced cycle.

Thankfully, getting your body back to a healthy and balanced state is possible!

GETTING RID OF STINKY SWEAT (DETOXING)

Although we’re designed to sweat, it shouldn’t be stinky. Stinky body odor is caused by bacteria - meaning we need to detox and clean our underarms.

DETOXING IS CRUCIAL when it comes to switching to a natural deodorant. If you skip the “detoxing” step, it will take your body a bit longer to adjust to natural deodorants. Detoxing will help your body purge toxins and bacteria that cause B.O, making your underarms a clean slate for using natural deodorant, or hopefully, forgoing deodorant altogether.

HOW TO DETOX

There are several quick and easy ways to start the detoxing process, but before you do those, it’s important to note that if your entire body is in toxic overload, detoxing just your underarms will only be so effective.

Now, here are some ways you can detox your underarms and get started on the new and improved, smelly-good YOU.

Repeat these steps for about 1-2 weeks to help your body detox (for more effectiveness, incorporate full-body detoxing as laid out in my “10 ways to detox” post above.)

Once a week in the evening, apply a detoxing clay mask to clean underarms. Create a paste using this clay powder and water, apply to clean underarms, allow to dry completely, and wash off. This clay will help pull toxins from your pores!

Apply an all-natural toner, like witch hazel, every day to your underarms morning and evening after you wash!

In the evening after washing and toning, apply an all-natural moisturizer + a drop of tea tree essential oil. I like using jojoba oil or aloe vera with 1 drop of tea tree oil at night before I sleep when I feel l need some extra moisture, especially after a detox mask!

In the morning after washing and toning, apply the natural deodorant. My FAVORITE natural deodorant that actually works is a recipe I made inspired by Piper Wai, which is a natural deodorant brand. Their deodorant is incredible and I 100% recommend it if you’re nervous about trying a natural deodorant. However, it is a little pricey at $11.99 for a 2oz jar. That’s why I messed around and worked on my own recipe that comes pretty dang close in smell, and is equally as effective. Find the DIY recipe here!

MY Top recommendation for natural deodorant

Piper Wai, hands down! It smells amazing and they have two options; a jar, or a more traditional tube.

My DIY Recipe! This is my top recommendation if you don’t want to buy deodorant, or if you have fun making stuff. My deodorant is good for sensitive skin and infused with natural essential oils and activated charcoal which aids your body in continuing to detox!

SAY HELLO TO SMELLY-GOOD YOU

The steps to detox might sound overwhelming, but it’s really so easy! When I started detoxing, I just incorporated this into my “skincare” routine and it didn’t even take too much time! The results are so worth it, too! Most days, I go without deodorant entirely and I have 0 body odor!!! This is coming from the girl who used to have to reapply deodorant 2-3 times a day and still struggled to keep my stink at bay.

I don’t know about you, but for me, this was a miracle. These days, I only wear my homemade deodorant 1-2 times a week or if I’m going to doing strenuous, sweat-inducing activities.

Once you detox and switch to natural deodorant, you’ll love it! It feels good knowing your underarms smell great, especially when you know your body and skin is detoxing and sweating as it was designed to do!